Groove to the Music with Dance Classes Near Sullivans Island, SC

Visiting South Carolina is like stepping into a welcomed tapestry of history, natural beauty, and warm hospitality. From the charming cobblestone streets of Charleston to the breathtaking vistas of the Blue Ridge Mountains, this vibrant state offers many experiences for every type of traveler. With its vibrant cities, quaint towns, and welcoming locals, South Carolina invites visitors to embrace its Southern charm and create memories that will last a lifetime. With a state with as much diversity and offerings as South Carolina, it’s no wonder we’ve chosen one of its small towns to feature in our Small Town Getaways series. Are you ready to explore all of the things to do in Sullivan’s Island?

Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina, is a quaint barrier island at the entrance of the Charleston Harbor with just shy of 2,000 residents. There is such a refreshing variety of things to do, you’ll never have a dull moment. Originally named O’Sullivan’s Island, this captivating destination harmoniously blends the rich heritage of the South with the idyllic charm of a coastal getaway. As soon as you step foot onto these shores, you’ll be captivated by the beauty and serene nature that encapsulates the island.

Do you love visiting and learning all about America’s small towns? Take our interactive quiz to discover which Small Town Getaway you should take this year.

Table of Contents

Is Sullivan’s Island Worth Visiting?

Absolutely! Sullivan’s Island is definitely worth visiting for its unique blend of natural beauty, rich history, and relaxed coastal vibes. Once you figure out what to do on Sullivan’s Island, there will never be a dull moment.

How To Get To Sullivan’s Islan

Getting Around Sullivan’s Islan

Best Time To Visit Sullivan’s Island

While the best time of year to visit Sullivan’s Island depends on personal preference, we’re here as your premier Sullivan’s Island travel guide to help you choose what season is best for you. No matter the season, activities in Sullivan’s Island are aplenty, so let’s get to it!

Where To Stay In Sullivan’s Island

Whether you’re seeking beachfront properties with stunning views or a quaint getaway with a touch of Southern hospitality, Sullivan’s Island has options to cater to various tastes. As far as Sullivan’s Island attractions go, sometimes it’s the accommodations that take the cake. What’s unique about choosing where to stay when on Sullivan’s Island is that there will be minimal if any, hotel or motel options. Your best bet is finding a charming home-away-from-home through VRBO.

Day One – A Few Local Favorites

Whether you’re taking a day trip to Sullivan’s Island or staying a weekend, we’ve come up with the best itinerary for you to consider. From finding out “what is Sullivan’s Island known for?” to exploring the beauty of the downtown Sullivan’s Island area, we have two full days of fun, sun, and delicious eats.

Day Two – Exploring The Coast

Visiting Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina is an experience of a lifetime. From sun-soaked days on the shore to immersing yourself in the island’s unique heritage, this small town offers a memorable coastal getaway for all who venture its way. Whether you’re strolling along its pristine beaches, exploring its historic landmarks like Fort Moultrie, or indulging in the local cuisine, the island offers a delightful escape from day-to-day life.

Also, you can keep learning about Sullivan’s Island courtesy of The Charleston Life’s YouTube video:

Are you ready to plan a day trip to Sullivan Island, South Carolina? Do you have your own list of things to do on Sullivan’s Island that you want to share with fellow travelers? Sound off in the comments section! Or if you want to keep learning about the best Small Town Getaways across the country, we have so many more for you to consider visiting.

Several Sullivan’s Island dog walkers and regulars are speaking up about their personal experiences with coyotes.

SULLIVAN’S ISLAND, S.C. (WCSC) - Several Sullivan’s Island dog walkers and regulars are speaking up about their personal experiences with coyotes.

This comes a day after town officials reported five coyote-led attacks involving dogs within the month of August.

They say the wild animals has been approaching people, dogs and roaming open areas of the beach more often than usual.

The Jourdan family says they experienced a too-close encounter with a coyote over the weekend.

“They were out halfway to the water, from the dune, so middle of the beach. And they were attacked by coyotes,” Jourdan said.

Five-year-old Willie Nelson, the Jourdan family dog, was taken by two coyotes early Saturday morning while on a walk with a babysitter.

Jourdan says it happened in broad daylight and in the middle of the beach.

He adds the family was devastated by the loss of their “wonder dog.”

“I was trying to get closure for my family’s sake, for Willie, because we weren’t even there. Which was frustrating. I crawled on my belly for over four miles between stations 26 and 28,” Jourdan said.

The attack occurred at Station 27, a part of the beach several residents have called a “breeding ground” for coyote packs.

Officials with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources say the breed has been approaching people, dogs and roaming open areas of the beach more often.

They add that mid-summer and fall are peak active times for these animals, meaning it is when coyotes migrate to new spaces, feed and have young.

SCDNR officials say another reason for the increased interactions could be from them being opportunistic feeders, meaning they will be quick and take anything they need.

Others say they have been chased by coyotes in the past but escaped.

“We were walking in June when a coyote came out of the dunes and started chasing,” Sullivan’s regular Shelly Carson said. “I was able to chase it away, and it ran down the beach to chase a golden retriever.”

Now, they avoid the area altogether or take proactive measures to be able to walk safely.

“I’ve always known there are coyotes here,” Carson said. “Never seen one until this year. Really, March was the first time I had my first sighting and started carrying pepper spray on the beach. In June I started carrying a birdie alarm. And now I carry a stick with me too.”

Visitors are asking for help from officials to curb the problem.

“It’s close to our hearts, but the coyote system is unfortunately not something that is new, declining or lessened. Rather the opposite,” Jourdan said.

They ask for coyote population control, area management and listening to residential concerns.

Town officials say they do have systems in place to manage the problem, which include education, tracking, hazing and lethal control.

They ask anyone who experiences an encounter or sighting to report the problem immediately.

If you run into a coyote, you’re advised to react loudly, throw small sticks or cans or spray the animal with water.

For more information on coyotes along Sullivan’s Island, click here.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

SULLIVAN’S ISLAND — The body of a swimmer who went missing on Sullivan’s Island around 3 p.m. July 29 has been recovered, according to authorities.

Elijah Giddiens was found by the U.S. Coast Guard in Shem Creek early on July 31, according to the Charleston County Coroner’s Office, which identified the 23-year-old Charleston man.

Shem Creek is about 5 miles north of where he was reported missing, near Station 13 on the western tip of the island.

On July 29, Andy Benke, Sullivan’s Island town administrator, said the town deployed two boats and a jet ski to search for the swimmer. U.S. Coast Guard units assisted, sending a helicopter and boat to surveil the ocean and nearby Charleston Harbor.

But the search was called off just after 5:30 p.m. due to heavy rain and rough currents.

Efforts to find the man resumed the next day, but it wasn’t until 7:15 a.m. July 31 that the Coast Guard found the body.

NORTH CHARLESTON — Hope still remained on Nov. 15 when a missing dog in Park Circle was spotted four times by various neighbors after going unnoticed for nearly 10 days.

The red merle Australian shepherd was first seen near North Charleston Elementary School early in the morning, then spotted later on a nearby street by someone walking a dog. A couple also saw the dog in the area that same day.

However, the brief encounters were futile. The 30-pound dog named Charlotte is still missing two weeks after she escaped on Nov. 4.

The dog’s owner, Liam Hurley, was in town from Austin, Texas, for his twin sister’s wedding when the dog bolted out of the rental house. The night of celebration turned into a search as Hurley, the newlyweds and friends spent hours after midnight looking for Charlotte.

The dog was seen the night she disappeared near Save A Lot off Rivers Avenue, but ran away when approached by the group of friends. That was the last time Charlotte was seen until Nov. 15.

Charlotte, who has one blue eye and one brown eye, is just days away from her first birthday.

Audrey Lipcius, Hurley’s sister who got married the night Charlotte escaped, posted the missing dog’s information on social media to get the word out. Neither Hurley nor Lipcius, who lives in Charlotte, are local to the area, making it a challenge to continue search efforts.

Hurley returned to Texas after staying an extra week in North Charleston searching for the dog. He said going back to his home without her was tough.

“The first thing that hits you when you walk in the door is the scent, her smell. I walked in there and she still has a little bed mat she likes to sit on, her little dog blanket ... toys on the ground,” said Hurley.

Even though Hurley cannot be there in person, the search efforts have continued as the community stepped in to help. Lipcius’ original Facebook post received hundreds of comments from people offering advice, sharing support or even taking the time to search the area on their own.

There are expensive places to live in South Carolina.

Then there is Sullivan’s Island.

CashNetUSA recently ranked Sullivan’s Island as the most expensive neighborhood in South Carolina. The ranking is part of a list of most expensive neighborhoods in every U.S. state, based on Zillow data.

Home prices across South Carolina overall have skyrocketed the last two years. For instance, the median home sales price in the state was $311,032 in the first quarter of 2023, up 22% from the first quarter of 2021, according to South Carolina Realtors.

And yet, that is all chump change compared to home ownership in Sullivan’s Island. A home there costs an average of about $5.4 million, the ranking states.

The 2.5 mile-long barrier island and its charming little beach town is about 10 miles from downtown Charleston. The island has a strict preservation plan and so doesn’t have the usual accommodations that visitors would expect, like major hotels and motels. Instead, only vacation rental homes are available.

The island does feature a strong restaurant scene, with plenty of options for fine dining and family eating.

Sullivan’s Island also has a good bit of history. The island was settled in the late 17th Century by Capt. Florence O’Sullivan and was later the site of a major Revolutionary War battle.

To compile the rankings, CashNetUSA used real estate data from Zillow to group together neighborhoods of towns and cities in all 50 U.S. states. It then calculated the average price in each neighborhood by adding together the house prices in each area and dividing them by the number of properties.

Why Sullivan’s Island is pricey, it is still not among the top most expensive places to live in the U.S. Below is a list of the 10 most expensive neighborhoods in the U.S. and their average house prices, according to CashNetUSA.

To keep things more in perspective, here’s an interactive map that shows the latest median sales price for homes in each South Carolina county, using data from Redfin.

SULLIVAN’S ISLAND — Town Council can control most all aspects of tree-cutting in its beachfront maritime forest because it can’t be bound by decisions made by previous councils in the matter, a judge has ruled.

The basic principle of Circuit Judge Jennifer McCoy’s ruling is a town council cannot enter into an agreement that will bind a successive council into doing or not doing certain things.

The decision, filed Jan. 30 in state court in Charleston, comes after a former Sullivan’s Island council reached a settlement in 2020 that mandated more thinning of the maritime forest than the town had contemplated.

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That settlement resolved a decadelong lawsuit — stemming back to 2010 — from a group of homeowners next to the forest who wanted to see more management of the land from the town.

The forest gradually grew on land that is accreting where the island meets the Atlantic Ocean. The effect has created a thicket between the large beach houses and the sandy beach, which blocked views of the ocean while also creating swampy and forested territory.

Any future councils would have been bound to that previous agreement.

The court decision changed that.

“As mayor, I’m very pleased that the judge agreed with our contention that that settlement agreement was not consistent with South Carolina law and that it should be voided,” said Mayor Patrick O’Neil.

Since the settlement was agreed upon, Sullivan’s Island residents elected a new council with a majority that was more favorably disposed to the maritime forest, O’Neil said.

“We’ve heard a lot from many residents — not all, but many residents — who fervently disagreed with that agreement,” O’Neil said. “That urged us to do something.”

The council brought forth a declaratory judgment that the prior settlement agreement was unenforceable and therefore void.

The court agreed with that position.

William Wilkins, a Greenville-based attorney with the firm Nexsen Pruett who represented the town, said he appreciated the prompt attention Judge McCoy gave to the matter.

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“She correctly applied the relevant principles of law, including the law that a town council may not enter into agreements that will bind a successive town council under the facts of this case,” Wilkins said.

Development is prohibited on the land at the center of the complaint. The town can permit or do certain amounts of cutting on the maritime forest when deemed appropriate or beneficial.

Landowners can apply for permits to cut three species of bushes or trees in front of their property, between it and the beach.

Guidelines are in place for how low the trees and bushes may be trimmed.

Issues dividing residents in the matter included those who wanted a better view of the water or were concerned about the wild animals living in the forest, such as coyotes, and those who preferred allowing the natural state to continue.

SC Climate and Environment News

Each Friday, the Rising Waters newsletter offers insight into the latest environmental issues impacting the Lowcountry and the rest of the South.